Ukraine's embassy has lately been receiving "information that Israeli citizens enter Crimea or carry out business activities on the peninsula with violation of rules established by Ukrainian laws"

Town of Balaklava near Sevastopol, Crimea

TEL AVIV, January 18. /TASS/. Kiev has warned Israeli citizens that visit Crimea and companies that work on the peninsula without permission from the Ukrainian government that it may impose sanctions on them, the Ukrainian Embassy in Israel said in a statement on Monday.

The statements said that "the embassy has been lately receiving information that Israeli citizens enter Crimea or carry out business activities on the peninsula with violation of rules established by Ukrainian laws" and "without corresponding permits from the Ukrainian government." "In case of continuing such activities… information will be handed to relevant Ukrainian agencies and services with the aim of bringing violators to responsibility. The issue of including Israeli companies on the sanctions list will also be considered," the document added.

In mid-March last year, Crimea re-joined Russia following a referendum. More than 82% of the electorate took part in the vote. Over 96% backed splitting from Ukraine and spoke in favor of reuniting with Russia.

Results of the referendum were celebrated by many Crimeans but the vote was widely criticized by Western leaders and at the United Nations. In the Soviet Union, Crimea was part of Russia until 1954, when Communist Party head Nikita Khrushchev transferred the Crimean region, along with Sevastopol, to Ukraine's jurisdiction as a gift.